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BlogTalk: A Nobel Prize and Climate Skeptics

By Maria Newman December 10, 2009 4:51 pmDecember 10, 2009 4:51 pm

The climate talks in Copenhagen continue to dominate much of the blog chatter today, like that on Think Progress and The Atlantic Web site. Many blogs were reacting to Tom Zeller’s article in The New York Times about the “climate deniers,’’ those who are not convinced, despite overwhelming scientific evidence, that humans have contributed to climate change.

Matthew Yglesias on Think Progress says that while the climate skeptics seem to be getting a lot of press lately, those who are concerned about global warming have the moral high ground .

While it’s true that effective communications tactics employed by the other side have been helpful to their cause, ultimately the main thing that’s helped them has been the willingness of people who know better to act in a morally indefensible manner.

The other big topic of the day, however, is President Obama’s speech accepting the Nobel Peace Prize, in which he said, “There will be times when nations — acting individually or in concert — will find the use of force not only necessary but morally justified.”

Many bloggers had high praise for the President’s speech, including some conservatives. Many, of course, ripped it apart. Thomas Lifson at Commentary called it “surprising”:

He acknowledges that many have regarded the prize as undeserved, and went on to deliver a speech that must have left his left base upset. He actually defended the use of force.

Mr. Lifson also says that the president “defended America,” something that not all right-wing bloggers agree with. Note Jim Hoft at Gateway Pundit, who says Mr. Obama’s speech was “bashing America.’’

A New York Times poll shows that a bare majority of Americans support President Obama’s plan to send 30,000 more troops to Afghanistan, and bloggers were also split in their reaction to the “war president” accepting a peace prize.

What struck me about this address was that it underlined how this war president, unlike recent other presidents, isn’t a proud war president. This is a man who understands the duty of being commander-in-chief, while not wallowing in the swagger of the gig.

And Gawker, which writes about celebrity sightings and media gossip as well as politics, has this to say: “Barack Obama’s Peace Prize acceptance speech started off humble, sounded kinda defensive, and it even got, weirdly, a bit Bush-y. But on the whole: it was pretty damn good!”

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